Abstract This article explores the complex and interwoven nature of the scored and traditional music featured in the film Inxeba (2017) in an attempt to bridge these seemingly disparate sound worlds. In identifying their significance to the film’s narrative and plot devices, the article posits that ‘The Wound’ and ‘Somagwaza’ serve as important case studies when regarding the complex identity politics central to the film. ‘The Wound’, a ‘house track’, sub-culturally speaks to the struggles of gay men in the 1990s as they negotiated the identity politics of the time. ‘Somagwaza’ in stark contrast is a traditional Xhosa song that is performed during ulwaluko initiation ceremonies, and explicitly describes particular masculine traits for Xhosa men to embody in order to maintain the status quo of male behaviour. When analysed together, these pieces speak to the identity conflict experienced by three gay Xhosa characters in the film. With an outright rejection of queerness in both urban and cultural spaces as implied by the film and its score, further questions arise on queer identity in a broader South African context, and the spaces in which queer people are ‘allowed’ to exist.

中文翻译：

---

Inxeba（伤口）中的音乐和身份：表征的探索和破坏

摘要 本文探讨了电影 Inxeba (2017) 中配乐和传统音乐的复杂性和交织性，试图弥合这些看似不同的声音世界。在确定它们对电影叙事和情节装置的重要性时，文章假定“伤口”和“Somagwaza”在研究复杂的电影核心身份政治时是重要的案例研究。'The Wound'，一个'house track'，亚文化地讲述了 1990 年代男同性恋者在协商当时的身份政治时的斗争。与此形成鲜明对比的是，“Somagwaza”是一首传统的科萨歌曲，在 ulwaluko 入会仪式期间演奏，明确描述了科萨男性为了维持男性行为现状而需要体现的特定男性特征。一起分析时，这些作品讲述了影片中三个同性恋科萨人角色所经历的身份冲突。由于电影及其配乐所暗示的城市和文化空间中的酷儿性被彻底拒绝，在更广泛的南非背景下出现了关于酷儿身份以及“允许”酷儿存在的空间的进一步问题。